"Community Hug" for ND

'Community hug' for Notre Dame

By GENE STOWE, South Bend Tribune Correspondent

5:32 a.m. EDT, September 23, 2012

Setting aside the typical town-gown tiffs over parking, traffic and partying, Wednesday's event concentrates on the university's commitment to South Bend in recent years, says Chris Murphy of 1st Source Bank, who chairs the dinner with his wife, Carmi. They were married by the Rev. Ted Hesburgh, C.S.C.

"One of the reasons I agreed to chair this thing is I wanted to have one great big community group hug for Notre Dame," Murphy says. "There's always a town-gown strain or tension. What they often hear is the negatives."

The list of positives is long, says Murphy and Tim Sexton, associate vice president for public affairs at Notre Dame.